As a small island economy, Fiji acknowledges the significance of the rules of the WTO in worldwide trade and its impact on Fiji’s efforts to integrate into the global economy. The meeting comes more than 20 years after the conclusion of the Marrakesh Agreement in Morocco which led to the creation of the WTO in January 1995. Another blow to India in the Nairobi ministerial declaration is that it has allowed developing countries to use limited export subsidies for transportation and marketing until 2023, subject to certain conditions.
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The organization’s director general, Roberto Azvedo, also praised the outcome of the meeting, calling the farm export decision the “most significant outcome on agriculture” in the WTO’s history.
The 10th WTO Ministerial Conference, gathered in Nairobi since Tuesday, agreed today on a global trade deal that benefits developing countries in Africa and around the world by getting rid of trade distorting export subsidies in agriculture.
Numerous other WTO members are saying the same thing, she said, adding “the ministers said that we have not been informed, we do not have a mandate, we have not briefed our cabinet”. Amid the continuing deadlock, the blame game has now shifted to social media with topics like #IndiaStandsBehindFarmers trending in response to #IndiaBlocksTrade possibly from developed countries.
She said that there is still no consensus on anything with regard to agriculture issues and several countries are of the similar view. However, industrialized countries have failed to reach an agreement on cuts to tariffs and agricultural subsidies.
For European producers and exporters, the deal brings new opportunities by creating a more level playing field towards both developed and emerging economies.
Another issue the member states have already agreed on was the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), which will have tariff elimination of 201 IT products, including staging commitments for each product. This means that by 2019 nearly all imports of the relevant products will be duty free, the WTO said.
Observers say it would be politically impossible for most Western countries to make those concessions, which are hugely popular in the nations that have them.
Those products include sugar, beef, pork, lamb, dairy, wheat, rice, wine, fruit, vegetables, processed foods and cotton.
Another positive outcome of the WTO conference references the accession of two LDCs into the organization; Afghanistan and Liberia.
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The Tenth Ministerial Conference of the WTO was held at Nairobi between December 15-19, 2015.
